Muscle Soreness

Muscle soreness after training often occurs when athletes first start a strength training program or when they perform unfamiliar exercises that work muscles which are not normally used. Muscle soreness can also occur when an athlete uses heavy loads for a prolonged period of time. Beginners who are exposed to heavy loads will also experience muscle soreness.

When this happens the muscle are damaged as the muscle fibres are slightly stressed. If the stress is severe then the muscle becomes traumatized. Muscle fibres usually return to their usual length without injury. Discomfort sets in during the first 24 hours to 48 hours following exercise and this is known as ‘delayed onset of muscle soreness’. The sensation of aching muscles tends to diminish after 5-7 days after the initial workout.

Progressive training will help prevent muscle soreness , and taking this a step further the athlete can go through a periodised strength training program which will help them avoid discomfort.

A good warm up will also allow the body to get itself ready for work and stretching is also recommended after a session. After extensive muscle contractions the muscle fibres actually become shorter and it can take 2 hours for the fibres to return to their resting length.

Vitamin c is known to help prevent muscle soreness and similar benefits have been seen by taking on board vitamin E.

Athletes who are exposed to heavy loads in training also require protein, carbohydrates and supplements. Too little carbohydrates can prolong muscle soreness.

In my experience training coaches either try to prevent muscle soreness in clients, or actively encourage it at times. If an athlete has a good all round fitness, has gone through a periodised program plus has reached the muscular strength or even muscular hypertrophy stage then some very famous trainers actively try to train athletes hard to the point of muscle soreness and see this as the signs of a good workout. If this approach is used then I strongly suggest you have a qualified trainer who can guide you through the process.

Most athletes will be happy to slowly progress with exercise using a qualified trainer and stay away from muscle soreness. I would suggest it is the more serious sports enthusiast who goes for the ‘no pain no gain’ mentality which as previously discussed does open them up to the risk of injury. Exercise should be fun and the client should enjoy what they are doing. During my time with the Royal Marines it was not possible to have a nice steady training program, instead during Royal Marine training the sessions pushed the recruits to their limits every day often on little sleep and living off rations. In the civilian world with health and safety all around us this is not the preferred approach. So it is not wrong to train in this fashion and many military forces use this approach, instead the sensible advice is always given of staying away from muscle soreness.

In summary if you train sensibly then you will avoid injury as injury will only set you back in terms of your training goals.